It may not even be Thanksgiving yet, but Silver Dollar City in Branson, Missouri, has already opened its yearly holiday event ‘An Old Time Christmas.’
By day, visitors can ride their favorite rides and attractions (weather permitting), and then stay to see the 6.5 million lights by night.
The big reason to visit this year is to experience Midtown — adding an additional 1.5 million lights to the parks already impressive display. It is the single largest expansion to the event in the past two decades.
One thing I love about this area is how immersive it is. Everywhere you cast your eyes, there is something to look at. “We light every square inch of those buildings inside of there,” said park president Brad Thomas. A quick glance at Midtown at night verifies this statement. Every color of the rainbow is used to surround guests in a winter wonderland of lights, trees, presents, snowflakes, angels, and more.
Out of all of the theme park Christmas events I’ve attended, this was the single most impressive light display. I did not want to leave.
“Every piece of Christmas in Midtown was welded, molded, created, lit, and installed by Silver Dollar City employees,” Thomas continued. He also later went on to debunk a rumor floating around that the lights came from Disney, who had just retired a light display at one of their parks.
Moving on from the Midtown area, the rest of the park maintains the same level of detail. It may not contain the high concentration of lights that Midtown has, but it still remains an absolute sight to behold.
This was my first time at An Old Time Christmas, and I was absolutely floored. I knew Silver Dollar City would do a good job, but that being said, my expectations were still exceeded. It really was magical.
Typically I’m the type of guy who won’t get in the Christmas mood till after Thanksgiving, but needless to say, this event alone got me in the Christmas spirit. Everything was perfectly well executed, with not a single area left untouched or out of place.
If this doesn’t raise the bar for what a theme park holiday event should be, then I don’t know what will.
-Taylor
Want more theme parks and roller coasters? Subscribe to Coaster Studios for daily uploads on the amusement industry!